THIS is the future – at least for Doc Brown and Marty McFly, who left Hill Valley, California, in their modified DeLorean DMC-12 time machine on October 26, 1985, and arrived in the future on October 21, 2015.

That day this week was celebrated across the world by millions of fans of the classic Back To The Future sc-fi series.

The films, made in the 80s, drew on the imagination of writers and set designers to create a 21st century world with all its technological advances. Some of them were so good that they accurately foretold the gizmos and gadgets we use today.

Hovering cameras predated drones we now use, fingerprint and retinal scanning is becoming increasingly common, while glasses that could be used to watch films were not unlike the hi-tech Google glasses.

The modified DeLorean DMC-12 featured in the Back To The Future films

Huge multi-plasma screens just like we see today were used in BTTF, video conferencing and Skype were seen in the film, people used tablets and kids played wireless video games.

It all adds up to a big tick for the producers and directors, who also predicted that most of us would like to look younger – however, not, as they thought, through full body blood transfusions.

They were also not too hot on fashion, either, suggesting trends like the double tie, although surprisingly not the hideous LED outfits used by Electro Velvet in their Eurovision debacle this year.

The time machine created out of a DeLorean gullwing car was a stroke of genius – as it both summed up the 80s and added a touch of futuristic glamour to the film.

It has become almost a symbol of the film and, while gullwing cars are not a common sight, the DeLorean has continued to spawn a series of rather beautiful and extraordinary descendants. Here, we look at some of them.

BMW i8 (Image: BMW)

BMW i8

BMW’s i8 is a plug-in hybrid car that suits the mood of the BTTF films. Powered by an electric motor and a 1.5-litre petrol engine, many people think this is a concept car but it has been in showrooms and for sale for well over a year now, although it is hard to get hold of one.

A six-speed automatic with manual mode, it can reach 155mph and, because of its electric motor, it can go from 0-62mph in just 4.4 seconds.

It has 362hp and boasts a range of 373 miles.

It has some other rather interesting claims to fame, too. The leather on the seats is made using an olive leaf tanning process and the key has been created from crushed castor beans.

Tesla X (Image: Reuters/Stephen Lam)

Tesla X

Unusually, this gullwing is an SUV . It has been built from the ground up as an electric car with a large crumple zone, instead of an engine, to absord the effects of an impact.

It carries a forward-looking camera, radar and 360-degree sonar sensors to enable advanced autopilot features when the autonomous car becomes a reality – which will be sooner than most of us think and not something Doc Brown envisaged for 2015.

Tesla call the doors Falcon Wing, not gullwing.

Their practicality is in allowing easy entry into the second and third row of the SUV so that parents avoid hitting their child’s head on the roof as they put them in a car seat.

The double-hinged Falcon Wing doors open up and then out, in only 30cm of space on either side of the vehicle.

Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG (Image: Mercedes-Benz)

Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG

The fabulous gullwing Mercedes , produced from 2010 to 2014, traces its roots back to the 300SL Gullwing and is every inch the glamorous luxury car beloved by millionaires and superstars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Roger Federee, Tom Hanks and even petrolheads like Jeremy Clarkson.

While the SLS is awash with interesting features, it is the doors that dominate. With the doors closed, the SLS just looks like a regular Mercedes but open them and you have something very special indeed.

Special, too, are the stats. The SLS goes from 0-62mph in just 3.8 seconds with a top speed of 197mph (electronically limited, of course).

Lamborghini Aventador (Image: Lamborghini)

Lamborghini Aventador

It’s not quite got the gullwing doors but, certainly in the spirit of BTTF, the Lamborghini Aventador has scissor doors that make it look just as exotic.

Indeed, scissor doors have become so synonymous with Lamborghini that they are often just referred to as Lambo doors.

They work on the same plane as the car so that you can park in tight spaces – although you do have to watch the height of the roof in underground car parks.

They were designed like this so that the driver could actually keep them open while on the road. And, just in case you didn’t know, Aventador is the name of a fighting bull that was particularly brave.

McLaren P1 (Image: McLaren)

McLaren P1

Like lots of supercars, the McLaren P1 has unconventional doors – in this case, butterfly doors.

This means that they move up like scissor doors and out like Gullwing doors.

The P1 is a plug-in hybrid sports car that uses a 3.8-litre petrol engine that delivers 727bhp alongside an electric motor that offers a further 176bhp. Together they provide the driver with 903bhp.

It has all sorts of interesting features derived from the McLaren F1, such as an Instant Power Assist System, a Drag Reduction System and a Kinetic Energy Recovery System.

But, basically, it goes from 0-62mph in 2.8 seconds and it has a top speed of 247mph but is limited to 217.

It is hand assembled at the rate of one car a day and costs about £900,000.